Sandra Bradshaw is a character appearing in the episode Market for Murder of the ITV crime drama Midsomer Murders.
Sandra worked as the receptionist at the clinic of her husband, local village physician Dr. Rupert Bradshaw. Feeling restricted in her daily routine and wanting a change, she decided to eavesdrop on her husband's private sessions with his patients, sabotaging the wiring of their intercom system so it never turned off and she heard all the dialogue in his private office.
Wanting to expand her life further, she joined the local village Reading Club, which was really a private stock exchange circle for the women of the village led by aging widow Marjorie Empson. Sandra, despite all her feelings of her underappreciation, since Marjorie had a pension for insidiously veiled insults and verbal degradation, did stellar work with the records and management of the entire group's shares, as she was the daughter of a financial bookkeeper she learned the trade from. As this wasn't enough, she began obsessing over one of her neighbors, Lord James Chetwood, husband of fellow Reading Club member Lady Lavinia Chetwood. Sandra developed an attraction to James that reached an unhinged psychosis, where she wanted to be his wife and primary caregiver.
She set her plan into motion when her efforts led her escalating in the direction of stalking, harassment, and violence, all to sabotage the lives of her community and destroy it enough to keep James and herself in her own privately isolated world. As James sold his beloved car to Selwyn Proctor, businessman husband of Reading Club member Tamsin Proctor, Sandra got revenge on what she saw was James' behalf. She lit a towel from the Feathers Hotel on fire under the wheel well of the car when Selwyn was getting in one night. He narrowly escaped before the car exploded.
Around this time, Sandra was already throwing letters into the Proctor house's pool, targeting Tamsin, as they spelled "MAUREEN" when put together. She knew Maureen was Tamsin's birth name before she changed her identity to get a high life for herself by charming a rich man. This was meant to drive a wedge between the couple, as Selwyn wanted to buy James' dilapidated manor and place Tamsin in charge of the property, which Sandra saw unbecoming of Tasmin and the manor due to her hidden past social status.
Ginny Sharp also received a Feathers Hotel bathrobe in the mail, as she ans Selwyn were having an affair during their clandestine meetings there; yet another act of sabotage on Sandra's part. But the final straw that enraged Sandra to become more violent was not just Marjorie's taunting of Sandra at the last Reading Club meeting by mentioning she was the "daughter of a bookie", but she was without an invitation to Marjorie's latest garden party. In reality, the invitation was sent late, but Sandra still snapped nevertheless and found it advantageous that the reading club was dissolving from Ginny having enough of Marjorie, especially fearing she knew about the affair, and Tamsin wanting to cash in on her shares and leave the club.
After Ginny confronted Marjorie on what she knew about the Feathers Hotel, and laughing in her face about how her late husband Gerald Empson felt up numerous women (which resulted in Marjorie furiously swinging her cane in an aimless attempt on Ginny's well-being), Sandra snuck in through the back window. In her mania, she confronted Marjorie as she approached her from the stairs above after hearing Sandra sneak in. Sandra bitterly proclaimed she was leaving the club and that Marjorie wouldn't be welcome at Chetwood manor when Sandra planned to take over.
Marjorie scoffed in amusement, until she realized Sandra was serious. She then tripped and fell down the stairs, which only peaked Sandra's offense and anger. Although never confirmed if it actually happened or Sandra imagined things, she saw Marjorie turned up to her and mutter "bookie's daughter". Sandra was finally fed u and snapped, grabbing Marjorie's walking stick and bitterly bludgeoning her to death in the head with the cane. She then broke into Marjorie's silverware display case, which she got from her family, stole all the valuables, and left them near the Feathers Hotel to stage the scene as a robbery. With the other women in the group who were married, she told her husband about the meetings' purposes, partly to divert suspicion from herself. Rupert simply said he found it odd they kept to the same book, even bought a copy himself so they'd talk in their lackluster marriage. Sandra just flatly left the office and returned to her post. James himself later found the rubbish bag of silver, which debunked that ruse he set at Marjorie's house earlier.
Knowing James had gone there regularly to spy on Ginny and Selwyn during their affairs, Sandra blamed Ginny, hence why she sent Ginny the robe. To up the ante and further secure her possession of James' lifestyle by her control, she threw ashtrays from the Feathers Hotel into Ginny's pool. As Ginny was diving to retrieve them, Sandra appeared in her signature black zippered hooded sweatshirt to confront Ginny, though this again is debatable since it's in her accounts through her lone flashbacks. Reportedly, she personally insinuated she was fully aware of James peeping in on her and and tried to allure him, warning Ginny not to "pursue" him. Ginny gleefully thought it was a joke and laughed, having no ill will toward Sandra, but still setting off Sandra's insanity because Ginny missed the point. Asking to be helped out, Sandra instead grabbed an Ashtray and bashed it over Ginny's head, leaving her to be found dead inside the pool surrounded by the ashtrays.
Sandra later learned from Lady Chetwood, through the bug she set up in Rupert's office, she was selling the manor to Selwyn. Sandra already had problems with Lavinia not catering to James' hyperactive hypochondria, feeling she would be better fit with Sandra's own nursing background. Expediting her plans into full swing, she confronted Lavinia on the disheveled roof she was repairing. She insisted she and James were in an affair of their own and he was leaving Lavinia for her, but Lavinia just pitied Sandra over her instability and politely asked if she was feeling well. Sandra, offended and humiliated, shoved Lavinia off the roofing a rage, the dear wife plummeting to the stone walkway below and dying instantly from the impact. James was only distraught even more, as Lavinia was his only love and life in another person.
Sandra, overcome at her utmost with her mania, didn't care and set her final step into motion. She sent a Feathers Hotel bathrobe to Tamsin so she'd get win of the affair and break off her marriage to Selwyn. She then emptied all the club's shares and closed the accounts to retain all the money for herself, hoping to use the finances for a life with James she'd never have. Heading straight to his house, she put her look together for more appeal and approach James with a medical bag and her intentions to be with him right away. She fully confessed to the murders, which only devastated and frightened James more. By this point, the detectives found the bug she placed in Rupert's office and rushed to James' manor.
James tried to get away from Sandra and hide, bu she followed close behind and let his dogs lead her to him. As she was accosting him once more, much to his horror, Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby arrived and offered her to come with him. In her delirium, she asked if he had an appointment with James. It wasn't long before she was carted away and taken to Causton to be interrogated at the station.
Sandra gave a full, taped confession st the station, going through each and every one of her targets, her emotions ebbing and flowing throughout. She ended after the recorder stopped by saying she'd be waiting for James to want her, an unrealistic hope never to be fulfilled. Rupert later received the belated garden party invitation while Sandra was in custody, shredding it with his bare hands before sprinkling the remnants into a waste bin. Sandra was likely placed in behavioral correctional custody due to her unhinged state of mind.
Victims[]
- Selwyn Proctor - Placed a Feathers Hotel towel in his car wheel, which ignited further when the ignition started. He was nearly killed from the fire and the seat belt got stuck, but he managed to narrowly escape the car bursting into flames.
- Marjorie Empson - Bludgeoned to death with her own walking stick after falling down a flight of stairs.
- Ginny Sharp - Struck on the head with a large ashtray while in the pool. Previously harassed with a bathrobe from the Feathers Hotel mailed to her.
- Lady Lavinia Chetwood - Pushed off the roof of her manor house.
- Tamsin Proctor - Harassed with letters thrown into her pool and a bathrobe from the Feathers Hotel mailed to her.
- Lord James Chetwood - Accosted and attempted to hold captive, but she was stopped. Previously stalked and obsessed over.